Consequence of Maintenance Delayed

This Ride: 9.2 miles
Kona Distance: 5,128 miles
Month to date: 82 miles
2010 Total: 5,614.5 miles

I deferred the planned maintenance on the bike this past weekend, and paid for it this morning.

It was a late night last night, and I really wasn’t sure I was going to get up to ride the Mosey Monday ride with the SPP guys, but when the alarm rang, I had been awake about 5 minutes already and decided to get up and get ready. All was proceeding well, until I pulled out the bike. Rear flat. I pulled it inside, changed it quick, and was out the door only a little late. I got to the Rusty Bridge where I met Dave, we started off and gathered Dan at the Ranger Station and the three of us were on our way.

It was pleasant enough. I tried ski gloves this morning, and my hands were a bit too warm. I’m still trying to find the right combination for 30 degrees on the bike. As we made the first sharp turn in Round Bay, I nearly fell because of a soft rear tire. I simply pumped it up, the leak didn’t seem all that fast, and the guys offered to escort me home. Changing a flat in the cold is not a lot of fun. I couldn’t get my CO2 canister to work, so it was the hand pump, and when I released the pump, something didn’t sound quite right. Sure enough, I was mostly flat again within a mile or so. When I went to top off the air, the valve in the stem came right out. That immediately emptied the tire, and now I had the choice of either changing the tire or calling home for the ride of shame.

Tire was changed promptly with Dave and Dan offering words of encouragement. Cold hands do not make for a speedy repair. Cold hands make for as quick a repair as possible. No incidents to report on the way home. I got home earlier than expected.

This afternoon, I promise I’ll do some bike maintenance, including a thorough check of the inside of the tires for debris.